The leisure trip to Bharathiyar Beach in Ennore, of course, was meant to be a joyous escape from the rigors of academic life but was unfortunately a tragic one and a tragedy and tragic thing happened on Saturday. Two students at a private engineering college drowned while swimming in the sea.
The young lives lost are Keerthika, a 19-year-old third-year B.Tech Information Technology student from Puducherry and Akash, a 20-year-old second-year B.E. Electrical and Electronics Engineering student from Avadi, according to Ennore police. Both students had eagerly anticipated this beach trip as one of their favorite moments of their summer vacation to spend time with their friends and enjoy the freedom from their everyday lives and work.
Bharathiyar Beach was full of friends that day and they were all happily taking a dip in the sea and sun and sand. But Keerthika and Akash also decided to play in the water and went to shore; they were lost in the ocean and they did not even know what the situation was like. They were not prepared for the strong ocean currents and the fast changing conditions as the two boys were swept away and drowned in the waves.
Local fishermen, rescue personnel and police officers responded quickly to the alarming reports of the incident. Search and rescue was immediately launched and teams were sent out to search the coastline and to search the waters for the two missing students. After a lengthy and painstaking search both Keerthika and Akash were eventually found unresponsive in the ocean and brought to the local government hospital for post-mortem examination.
The tragic deaths of their friends have brought great pain and sadness to their schoolmates, faculty and family. Keerthika and Akash are bright young people who are very bright, enthusiastic and ambitious people who have a big future ahead of them, friends said. The loss of them has left a great void in the school community and we are very much in sympathy with the families of the deceased.
Following this tragedy, police are now trying to understand the exact sequence of events that led to the drowning. Preliminary evidence suggests the students may have underestimated the strength of the sea currents while swimming. Also, it appears they may have entered an area of the beach that had been recommended as unsafe for swimming by local beach safety authorities, the report says.
The coastlines along Chennai (and particularly in the Ennore area) are renowned for unpredictable tides and strong undercurrents. In some conditions, the danger can be very high. Beach guards and local people have always warned beachgoers not to enter too deep into the water and to avoid swimming where it is restricted or not closely monitored.
This tragic incident is a painful reminder of the importance of beach safety. It underscores the importance of public awareness for people, especially young children who may want to get into the ocean. Water users are advised to only swim in places where lifeguards are present, to stay away from the ocean when high tides or bad weather are happening, and to listen to safety warnings given by the authorities. Even experienced swimmers can be in danger when a strong current strikes and must be watched out for and cautious.
Educational institutions also play a crucial role in promoting responsibility among students on a recreational trip. For safety, people should always be in groups when they visit beaches or natural water bodies. A thorough awareness of what is out there and safety guidelines can greatly reduce the likelihood of accidents and make it safer for everyone.
I was so sad about the deaths of two young people that I was sad all weekend, but I was so sad also because I just saw the reactions of students, teachers and the community. The safety at popular beaches should be improved so that warning signs, additional lifeguards are put on and the public is educated about the dangers of rough sea.
As the families of Keerthika and Akash grieve their tragic loss, the reasons for such a tragic loss remain unknown. The deaths of these two engineering students are painful reminders of how quickly a day of leisure can go from recreation and become irreversible loss; a void that cannot be filled.
In light of this tragedy, beachgoers’ safety and the safety of the coast are now of utmost importance. We are still at sea and the safety of the beach and beachgoers must be kept in mind, they say. Keerthika and Akash’s tragic deaths are a wake-up call and all people must be aware of the unpredictable nature of the ocean and should be extremely careful while going to and staying at the beach and have safety in mind.
